SEMINOLE — A man arrested last month on a charge that he killed his mother was released from the Pinellas County Jail on Thursday after prosecutors said they didn't have enough evidence to take the case to a grand jury.

Related News/Archive

Kevin Kyne, 23, didn't even have to post bail, as he was released on his own recognizance.

"We have some concerns about this individual's guilt," said Bruce Bartlett, chief assistant for the Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney's Office. "Until we have a comfort level that would support going forward, we don't feel comfortable having him incarcerated."

Kyne was arrested Aug. 15 and accused of strangling his mother, Diane Kyne, 49, at their home at 8918 134th St. N.

The primary witness in the case was Diane Kyne's husband, William E. Kyne, 53.

He said Kevin and Diane had been arguing off and on for hours that day because Kevin had changed the access code on a computer so that no one else could use it. Also, he said, Diane wanted her son to move out of the house.

William Kyne said he was in another room watching a NASCAR race during part of the argument but went to check on the two after the quarrel turned silent. He said he found Kevin with his hands around his mother's throat. Preliminary reports show that she died from strangulation.

On Friday, William Kyne said he thinks that Pinellas sheriff's detectives now are zeroing in on him as a suspect. He said investigators told him that Kevin Kyne passed a polygraph test and, therefore, "I was the next logical suspect," he said.

William Kyne said detectives treated him with respect when they interviewed him at the time of his wife's death. Earlier this week, they returned for more questions.

"Their tone had changed dramatically," he said. "They were kind of standoffish, like they were trying to provoke something.

"They said to me, 'You said you saw him choking her.' And I said, 'No, I assumed he was choking her because he was on top of her. I saw the top of her head, which was turning blue and red.' "

Before the detectives left, Kyne said, one of them suggested that he hire a lawyer.

In April 2000, William Kyne's previous wife, Krista Kyne, 44, was discovered dead in the home's swimming pool. Foul play was not suspected.

"They said it looks bad for me because I've had two wives that have died now," he said.

The Pinellas Sheriff's Office and prosecutors stressed on Friday that their investigation is continuing, though they declined to say in which direction it is heading.

They would not say that Kevin Kyne has been dropped as a suspect, nor would they say whether William Kyne has become one.

Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Marianne Pasha said it wouldn't be uncommon to have several conversations with a witness such as William Kyne.

People arrested on first-degree murder charges rarely get out of jail while awaiting trial, and those who do usually must post a high bail.

In 2002, William Kyne married the former Diane Pamela Morton. Her son, Kevin, changed his last name to his stepfather's when he turned 18.

Kevin Kyne could not be reached for comment Friday.

His biological father, Karl Karakash, said his son is innocent.

"I know my boy didn't do it," said Karakash, 46, of Brandon.

"He's upset that his mother has passed," he added. "And he wasn't able to make the funeral."

Times researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report. Curtis Krueger can be reached at ckrueger@sptimes.com or (727) 893-8232.

Seminole man arrested in the death of his mother is released from jail 09/03/10
[Last modified: Saturday, September 4, 2010 12:20am]
Photo reprints | Article reprints